This bird, which follows the inspirational theme of the month for the Palette Club, was actually my second artwork during our two hour zoom studio time. Since I had the time for a second piece I wanted to try out soft pastel and I knew I wanted to do a bird- all my fellow artists’ bird paintings were very inspiring. I also wanted to work in pastels, since the sanded paper I ordered had arrived. At our meeting last month Vianna Szabo demonstrated soft pastels for us. I have been itching to play with pastels since. I have a ways to go before I can make the masterful pieces by Vianna, or other members of our club. But the demo gave me enough that I am happy with my red-winged blackbird. I am certainly looking forward to seeing these guys around, as they are a herald for spring weather. The robins used to be, but they have been staying year round lately- thank you, global warming.

The first thing I worked on this morning was a red heart for the AHA’s wear RED day. I decided on this plan last night while I put out my son’s red shirt for the school’s wear red spirit day. I thought I was going to have to draw in the details after the paint dried to make it recognizable, but even with my limited palette, I thought it worked the way it was. I used to draw a lot of scientific diagrams in school. As a visual learner, I enjoyed adding lots of illustrations to my notes. It’s been a while, but I still enjoy the process.

What mediums are you eager to try out in your art practice?